


That Day Every Year Brings Heartache

by KairaKara101



Series: Luche Lazarus - The Alpha Cat of Insomnia [3]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alcohol, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-01-02
Packaged: 2019-03-03 15:45:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,542
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13344372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KairaKara101/pseuds/KairaKara101
Summary: Luche despises that one day of the year that makes his heartaches and it hurts like he was run over by a Niflheim train.





	That Day Every Year Brings Heartache

Luche stood at the very top of the Citadel staring out at the brightly lit city all around him as a breeze blew through the area. His shift had ended ten minutes ago and for once, he saw no need to report back to Kingsglaive Headquarters immediately. He had checked the calendar that morning and felt his heart stop briefly at the date.

The city was suffocating him and he needed to leave, but for something that was on such a short notice, he wondered if the Captain would allow him some leave time. Clenching his fists, he closed his eyes and took a shaky breath. Luche jumped slightly when his comms buzzed and he tapped it.

“Lazarus,” he stated as calmly as he could considering his heart was beating rapidly. He allowed for his hand to drop to his side.

“Luche, why are you still in the city?”

“I…I’m not understanding the question. Should I not be in the city, sir?” Luche inquired as he glanced down at the ground from his location. If he didn’t have the ability to warp, this height would’ve been unnerving. Sometimes, he wondered if death would have been more pleasant at least then he would be with them and not struggling to protect his home at random hours of the day while slaving away and risking his life for a people that were constantly ungrateful because all they see is the peace. Luche clenched his fists before the voice snapped his thoughts back to the moment.

“You requested leave a few weeks ago,” Captain Drautos’ voice echoed through his earpiece. Luche blinked as he tried to remember when he did but came up empty, “Luche, I don’t want to see you at work tomorrow. Take your leave.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll see you when I return,” Luche answered and heard the comms click off. Luche released the breath he was holding. He gave the Insomnian skyline one last glance before falling backward off the side of the Citadel. It was a long fall so Luche wasn’t worried about going splat on the Citadel front doors, but it would make a statement if he was ever so inclined to paint the ground in his blood. He scoffed at the thought, before he warped the last few feet down to the ground kneeling, scaring a few Citadel employees. Grabbing his dagger, he sheathed it as he stood up and turned to glance at the employees blankly, unnerving them slightly and making them scurry off.

He started walking away from the Citadel, heading for his apartment with his hands in his jacket pockets. He kept his eyes on the sidewalk while taking step after step through the throngs of people on the busy streets, making his way towards the subway system. He hopped onto the subway and leaned against the wall near the door as people continued to pile in. It was suffocating in that subway, Luche stared out of the window as the city blurred by when they weren’t underground. There were whispering happening all around him yet he couldn’t seem to hear any of it. It was as if he was stuck underwater or in his own bubble of torture. A deafening silence that roared so loudly. As soon as the subway stopped and opened, Luche pushed his way out urgently.

The silence that was roaring in his head was like nails scratching at the chalkboard. Unbearable. Completely unbearable. Luche managed to finally make his way to his apartment door after almost rushing into a crazy mess. His chest was giving him stabbing pains as he tried to gasp for air subtly. He hated this time of the year. Hated it with all his heart. Luche sighed as he shut the door behind him. This city will be the death of him. He threw his keys on the counter and walked briskly into his room. Grabbing the packed bag that was underneath his bed, Luche threw it onto his back and strolled out into the living room snatching up his keys and motorcycle helmet.

Luche locked his door and took two steps down the stairs at a time. He needed to be out of the city. The city that housed people that could care less of the sufferings of others outside of their precious walls. He needed air to breath, to ease the pressure that was building all morning. Luche clenched his hands as he tried to push all the thoughts out of his head. Mama always said that he thought too much. That his mind was always thinking of things and that other times he ran head first into things.

He stopped in front of his motorcycle and took a shaky breath. He needed to focus otherwise he’d end up dead. Then he’d have Nyx and them poking fun at him. Securing the helmet over his head, he ignited the motorcycle engine and started to drive out onto the highway leading out of Insomnia. Luche watched passively as the city passed by while he zoomed past. This city that hid behind their magic wall, while others fought to survive out there always under threat of some kind. Luche stared forward as he stepped on the gas pedal.

The wind blew against his helmet making a vacuumed space around him. He couldn’t hear anything other than the loud wind and the purr of the engine as he zipped through Insomnia’s intricate highway system. When he stopped at the gates, he flashed his papers and Glaive ID before the Crownsguard allowed him to leave the city walls. He knew the roads like the back of his hand. These lands were his backyard and he couldn’t help but release a breath as some tension left his shoulders. Luche stopped at a gas station and took his helmet off.

“Hey, look who finally showed up,” a familiar voice yelled out, Luche glanced up and gave the owner of the voice a half smile.

“And look who’s still kicking,” Luche retorted as he walked over to the man. The older man clasped his hand and pulled him into a shoulder hug.

“Like daemons and monsters are going to take me out, Lu,” he stated with a shit-eating grin, “I’m made of sturdy stuff.”

“Like the rocks in which your family hoards?” Luche replied as the man shoved him lightly shaking his head.

“I resent that, Lu. You always bring up the rocks when you leave Insomnia,” he answered wrapping an arm around Luche’s shoulders, “about time tho, I was worried that you couldn’t make it.”

“Would you believe me if I said, I forgot?” Luche whispered softly as he glanced up at the darkening sky.

“Yeah, I would. You’re a workaholic and you put too much on your own shoulders,” the man answered softly, “now here’s the question, keep driving or stay the night?”

“Damien, we’re going to keep driving,” Luche replied, “I just need to…” Damien patted his shoulder and nodded solemnly when Luche couldn’t finish the sentence.

“I know, Lu. You don’t have to explain,” Damien answered with a small smile, “let’s get some supplies and head out then.” Damien strolled into the mart to gather some supplies while Luche took a breath to calm his suddenly racing heartbeat. It hurts. It shouldn’t but it does. Luche’s not sure when thinking about this time of year started hurting, but it has continued to hurt since. It wasn’t the rapid heart beating that bothers him, it was the stabbing pain that made his heart feel like it was getting ripped into pieces. The feeling always left him gasping for breath and slightly off-kilter from the sudden pain. He has looked into it before and he’s not sure he quite believes it to be heartache. Luche frowned sighing softly and glanced up to see Damien walking back out with a grin on his face before throwing something at him. Luche grabbed it mid-air before looking down at the item.

“A potion?” Luche blurted out while he glanced up at Damien with a small frown.

“Is it really a potion tho?” Damien replied as he slapped Luche on the shoulder, laughing softly at Luche’s exasperated expression, “you get the chance to chose whether or not it’s a potion, Lu.”

“I hate you,” Luche muttered as he pocketed the bottle.

“Nah, you couldn’t hate me even if you tried, pipsqueak.”

“You asshole, I’m only 6 years younger,” Luche retorted as he swiped at Damien quickly. Damien laughed loudly as he dodged the swipe.

“Your feline characteristics are coming out,” Damien stated grinning ear to ear. Luche felt his face heat up as he turned to put his helmet back on.

“Shut up,” Luche muttered, clicking the strap together, securing the helmet. He turned to Damien who was smiling at him fondly, “what?”

“Glad to see that you still have some fight in you,” Damien said softly as he walked past him to get into his car. Luche pursed his lips shaking his head before swinging his leg over his motorcycle and inserting the key into the ignition. Following after Damien’s car, Luche allowed for his mind to wander.

Luche scoffed as kept his eyes on the road. On most days, his heart was being held together with verbal snark and constant menial work of dealing with the Glaives that he wouldn’t have to think about his always bleeding heart. There were nights where he’d wake up in cold sweat at the horrors he’d seen, others where he’d get so nauseous that he decided to get himself drunk. He didn’t want to remember how his parents died, or how his childhood literally burned into flames right in front of his eyes, unable to do anything other than run. He was powerless then as he was now. Sure, he got power from the King, but at this point, he doesn’t even know what he’s trying to protect at this point. His home? What home? His home was long gone, and the people he knew… dead by the hellfires with the exception of Damien Luke, the cockroach living underneath a rock.

“Luche! Daemons incoming!”

Luche glanced up and frowned before making an abrupt stop next to Damien’s car. He sighed as he got off his motorcycle and cracked his knuckles annoyed.

“You know, Damien. I’m really fucking tired of these assholes always showing up at night. You’d think they’d get the fucking hint after all these years.”

“Lu, no offense, but they can’t bring back the info if we kill them all,” Damien replied as he got out of the car with his dagger, pistol, and shotgun, “so obviously they’re going to keep coming out of the woodworks.” Damien threw the locked pistol at Luche while loading his shotgun. Luche snatched the pistol from the air and flicked the safety lock off.

“Oh fuck off, Damien,” Luche replied walking and shooting the goblins with a stoic expression. Damien chuckled as he shot a goblin in the head.

“You never change, Lu,” Damien stated as he punched another on in the face, “wanna bet who gets the more kills?”

“Really?” Luche exclaimed reloading the pistol, “you really want to make this a fucking game?”

“For old time sake, Lu,” Damien responded with blasting a goblin’s leg off.

“Fuck old times sake!” Luche retorted while stabbing another daemon into the side.

“Your ma would be so disappointed in your vulgar language!” Damien replied grinning while reloading his shotgun. Luche shook his head as he jumped back dodging a goblin swipe and shooting it in the head vanquishing the last of the daemons.

“My mama would’ve killed me,” Luche replied softly as he flicked the safety back on, “or she would have given me that disappointed gaze and I’d fold.” Damien laughed as he slapped Luche’s shoulder before heading towards his car.

“Man those were the days,” Damien answered as he dropped the shotgun in the passenger seat of his car.

“Yeah…,” Luche whispered releasing a shaky breath following after him, “I shouldn’t be bothered by this anymore.” He gasped quietly as a sharp pain pierced his heart, making him stop as his hand clutched at his chest. Damien frowned as he came over and laid a gentle hand on his shoulder.

“Luche, you feeling the sharp pain again?” Damien questioned concerned. Luche nodded and released a breath loudly.

“It’s been years but this fucking pain won’t leave,” Luche hissed angrily. Frowning, Damien pushed Luche towards his motorcycle slowly. It was concerning that Luche kept feeling those pains, but Damien wasn’t a doctor so he couldn’t make any judgments or decisions.

“It’ll ease, Lu, but that’ll take time,” Damien whispered quietly, “let’s get going. We have a lot of ground to cover.”

“Right,” Luche replied swinging his leg over the motorcycle and waited for Damien to start leading towards his childhood home. Rubbing his chest, Luche leaned forward as he stepped down on the gas. He hated that pain so much. A constant reminder of what happened to him and his family. Hell, there were days where the blade of his dagger looked so damn appealing and that he’d probably be willing to just turn that blade to his chest.

Luche shook his head at the thought. He was better than this, better than the pain. Luche followed after Damien’s car with his motorcycle’s light illuminating the road in front of him. He really needed to stop thinking so much. After many more hours of driving, the two of them drove up to the village that they both grew up in. Luche turned off his motorcycle and took his helmet off.

He glanced around him at the quiet village. Nothing looked like he remembered. There used to be a flower shop at the edge of the village but now houses the butchers. He wondered if there was an irony of something beautiful becoming a slaughterhouse. Like how his village used to be home to him and now its nothing more than standing on the ashes of those that were killed. Their history and culture stripped away by a baptism of fire.

“..che… Lu…” Damien waved his hand in front of Luche’s face with his brows scrunched in concern, “Luche!” Jumping, Luche blinked rapidly stepping away from Damien slightly, “you still with me, Lu?”

“Yeah, I’m still here,” Luche whispered rubbing his forehead with his fingers, “it’s been a long ass day.”

“Your vulgar mouth is more prominent when you’re tired,” Damien said smirking amused, crossing his arms while putting the weight on one leg. Luche looked at him blankly.

“Oh shut up, Damien.”

Damien chuckled as he wrapped an arm around Luche’s shoulders and started to lead him towards the small house that was on the outskirts of the village.

“You need sleep, Lu. You’re not emotionally equipped to go do that tonight,” Damien whispered while he opened the door to the small house. Luche opened his mouth to retort but Damien clasped a hand over his mouth, “No Lu, you don’t need to speak at all. Just get your rest for tomorrow, cause I know you’re going to definitely need it.” Bringing a hand up to peel Damien’s off, Luche turned to give him an unamused frown. “Go to sleep, you ass,” Damien stated calmly.

Luche rolled his eyes and walked off to the usual couch that he slept on every year around this time. Damien watched as Luche dropped his bag on the ground and flopped over on the couch immediately knocking out from his exhaustion. Sighing softly, Damien went to get the blanket to draped it over Luche gently. Damien scoffed quietly remembering the days where Luche was a rebellious kid following him on hunts he had no business being on. Those days were long gone though, burned away when Luche saw his parents murdered in front of him. Damien sighed as he decided to call it a night. Tomorrow was going to be a tough day for both of them, more so for Luche than him.

****

Consciousness came slowly to him as he opened his eyes to the gray sunlight filtering through the dingy blinds. Groaning, he covered his eyes with his arm and laid there with his mind surprisingly blank.

“You getting up anytime soon?” Damien’s voice reached his ears and he turned his head towards the voice. Damien was standing near the doorframe with a sizzling pan in hand.

“If that’s Garula bacon, then yes I will be getting up,” Luche replied sleepily, rubbing his eyes. Damien laughed heartily smirking.

“It is Garula bacon,” Damien replied as he turned on his heels and started to walk back into the kitchen, “get up Lu, or I’ll eat them all.”

“You’re insufferable, Damien,” Luche retorted as he sat up, blinking the sleep away and folding up the blanket. He went off to the bathroom to wash up for the day. Staring in the mirror, Luche realized that he was still wearing his glaive uniform. This uniform that gave him another home yet shackling him to a life to serve a king that couldn’t protect the homes of those that served him. Luche knows he’s being a bit unfair, but he can’t help the feeling that burns in his throat or the taste of bile and ashes that covered his mouth whenever he thinks about it. Luche pushed himself off the sink and left the bathroom. He needed to stop thinking so much about that. Plus, Garula bacon sounded and smelt delicious. Luche walked into the kitchen seeing Damien finishing up breakfast.

“Take a seat, Lu,” Damien stated without looking as he started to plate the food. Luche sat down and laid his head on his hand staring blankly at a corner of the room. Damien watched Luche from the corner of his eye. Luche was more dazed than usual. Grabbing the plates, Damien came over and laid it down in front of Luche before grabbing a seat across from him, “Lu? Luche?”

“Hmm?”

“You need to eat,” Damien said softly, keeping a concerned gaze on him. Luche nodded slowly before he picked up the fork to start eating the eggs and bacon. Damien munched on his food with an eye on Luche. Could a person look so pale? Damien wasn’t sure if the color would return to Luche’s pallid face at least not until he would be able to move on. Otherwise, Damien was sure that Luche just pushed the event into the farthest reaches of his mind. Out of sight out of mind sort of thing. There was a brief moment that Damien could see a little bit of that little boy that followed after him all those years ago when Luche took a bite of the Garula bacon. It was silly but Damien took pleasure in seeing Luche happy even if it was the smallest things like eating bacon. Luche finished it much quicker than Damien was anticipating so when Luche pushed the chair back and grabbed the empty plate to drop in the sink, it gave him a bit of a jump.

“I’ll be back later,” Luche muttered as he made his way out of the house. Luche walked through the little town watching as people started their day, pulling their carts or opening their doors. For a moment it almost felt like home, but then the radio blared the situation with the war and it was like a punch in the gut.

Biting his lower lip, Luche made his way up the hill that was near their town. The place he needed to get to was on the hill and through the forest. One of the first things he did when he had gotten downtime for the first time drove all the way back to his town and made that little place for his bleeding and shattered heart. And the trek up to that place was purposely made difficult too, sometimes when it rains the hill would get all muddy and he’d slip as he made his way up. It was his way of self-torture, because why the hell did he get to live while his family died?

His heart ached and the pain flared as he continued up the hill. Memories of family dinners around the table, learning how to kill a Garula and cutting it up, to quiet nights reading through books or drinking a warm drink watching as the snow fell around them. Luche tripped and landed roughly on his hands and knees. Luckily he was still wearing his glaive uniform otherwise the gravel would have bitten into his skin. His eyes blurred as he took a shaking breath pushing the memories away. There was a soft and quiet meow snapping Luche’s attention up looking around like he saw a ghost.

“Please… don’t do this to me…” Luche gasped out quietly as he pushed himself up shaking like a leaf. He fisted his hands as he made his way up the hill. It hurts. It felt like his chest was going to explode. The pressure would explode on him eventually and it was going to kill him. After a few more falls, Luche made it to the top of the hill breathing heavily. A gentle urging meow echoed around him as if it was riding the wind currents. That familiar loving meow tore his heart into even more pieces. He’d almost forgotten about her in his haste to fight back in anger after everything that happened.

Luche blinked as he stared at the three gravestones sitting quietly in the middle of the meadow. When did he make it here? Wasn’t he just on the hill… He continued to stare at them blankly and as if a wooden bridge snapped he collapsed to his knees in front of them. A shaking hand traced the words on them slowly as if trying to memorize the essence of who the words were supposed to represent. As if words could ease the pain that pulsated in his chest with each short breath he took.

“M-mama… Papa, Lily…,” Luche choked out weakly as the tears he had long thought to have dried up started to well up, “w-what am I doing? Why… why am I still here?” he punched the earth hunched over as the hot tears fell, “Why am I still alive when you’re all dead?”

The sweet melodic lullaby that his mama used to hum when he was a child echoed around him like a haunting lullaby. The little flowers he used to pick floated through his mind as he ran around with Lily. All those times messing around in the pond when he still couldn’t swim. The times he got caught trying to swing his Papa’s daggers because he wanted to be like him. But now… Luche lifted his head to stare up at the sky as it opened up and tears fell from the heavens, hitting his face and blending with his own tears.

But now, Luche’s heart ached as much as it was hollow. He’d never taste his Mama’s cooking or hear about his Papa’s hunts. Hell, he’d never hear Lily nagging him about not doing something either. They were gone. There would be no more moments of him getting angry at them, or being able to say how much he didn’t mean what he said and apologize. He hated that his last words to them weren’t something more meaningful. He couldn’t remember their smiles, their laughter, their touch.

Luche screamed as the dam holding all of his memories broke along with his heart. He wished his memories were clearer. He wished that they would be there when he walked through the door welcoming him home. He wished he could have had the chance to share his achievements with them. He wished that he could hear them say that they were proud of him. He wished with all his heart that he could have told them that he loved them every damn day that he could have and in turn cherished their love for him. He wished that everything was a dream and that this life he was living was merely a horrible nightmare. Luche clawed at his chest with his hands trying to ease the pain that was still haunting him. His throat was beginning to hurt from his screams, but he couldn’t handle the pain anymore.

That’s right Luche remembered and glanced down at the dagger still attached to the belt. He could… he could end the pain with his own dagger. He didn’t have to float in his own pain, he could end it. He could end it and reunite with them. An unsteady hand moved toward the sheathed dagger and pulled it out by the handle and stared at the glinting metal in almost awe. He could have those moments again. It was but one action away.

There was a loud growl as a powerful whisker swatted the dagger out of his hand, throwing him out of the little loop of dark thoughts. He stared blankly at his empty hands before the low growl reached his ears and a warm breath flowed over his shoulder. Luche felt a furry warmth nudge his cheek grounding him in the present moment. He turned his head and saw the face of a familiar coeurl. Luche brought a shaking hand to caress the coeurl’s face.

“F-fang…,” Luche choked out as he realized where his mind went. Fang nudged him gently purring in comfort, “I… I’m sorry.”

“Purr,” Fang replied softly licking his cheek. Luche buried his face in Fang’s shoulder as sobs wracked his body. Fang curled up against him keeping him protected from the rain.

****

Damien pursed his lips as he went into his small kitchen to pull out a bottle of the strong stuff. He poured himself a glass and sat down staring at the golden color of his drink. The way the liquid glistened off the ice reminded him of his own parents who died studying rocks like the crazy people they were.

Sometimes Damien forgot how much younger Luche was when he lost his parents compared to him. Damien was old enough know that he had his duties to both the Lazarus’s and to his own parents to move on. Then again, he lost his parents from their work as rock scientists, not in a Niflheim invasion and massacre. He knocked back the drink and poured himself another one.

Luche has been gone for a quite some time and it was starting to make him uncomfortable waiting and doing absolutely nothing. He rocked his drink around for a bit before he knocked it back and got up. He needed to go out and make sure the idiot didn’t kill himself. He wasn’t going to lose his friend to suicide if he could help it. Damien knew, knows how strong Luche can be. He knows that Luche is a fighter and that he just needs the push and support to keep walking forward. Damien grabbed his shotgun and holstered it walking out into the rain. He made the trek up the hill with some difficulty fighting the muddy slope.

“Damn it, Luche. You put those on this hill just for torture, didn’t you?” Damien muttered as he pushed forward with mud covered boots, “you’re a calculating ass. Shit!” Damien steadied himself so he didn’t go face first into the mud. When he made it to the top, Damien took a deep breath slightly annoyed at Luche’s ingenuity of self-torture. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw a transparent tabby cat waiting for him near the edge of the forest, “Lily?”

Her tail swished back and forth as he heard a gentle purr. She looked eager to walk into the forest and Damien nodded at her.

“Lead the way, Lily. You’ve always known him best,” Damien stated as she got up to her feet and started running in the direction of the graves. Damien ran after her worried. She was running. Damien felt rocks settle at the bottom of his stomach as he prayed to anyone that would listen to keep Luche from doing something stupid. Because despite how brilliant that ass could be, Damien knew there were some really dark places in Luche’s mind.

He broke through the forest and stopped at the meadow. The sight that greeted him sent aches to his own heart. Luche was curled up against Fang asleep like he used to do when he was a child and got too upset to mentally deal with it. Damien saw Lily’s ghost sitting next to Luche with her tail flicking back and forth slowly. She turned to Damien and meowed softly as the wind carried her voice to him. Damien took a shuttering breath and walked over to kneel down next to them. He brushed the stray strains of hair out of Luche’s face.

“I’ll take care of him, Lily, Fang,” Damien said softly, “thank you for watching over him.” Lily meowed softly before giving Luche a little gentle kiss on the cheek. Damien picked him up as Fang stood up and growled, “sorry, you both know I don’t understand like Luche does.” Damien chuckled when Fang rolled his eyes before motioning to his back, “ahh, I understand. Thanks for the help, Fang.” Damien laid Luche over Fang’s broad back before they started to make their way back to town. Lily stopped them at Luche’s discarded dagger and Damien bent down to pick it up. Lily meowed sadly as she stepped back towards the graves. Fang gave her a small bow as Damien gave her a hunter’s salute.

Making their way down was easier in some aspects but harder in others. He didn’t want Fang to drop Luche because that would have made a mess of things and then Luche would have killed him for dropping him. When they got closer to town, Damien took Luche off Fang and half carried him back to the little house. Fang watched from the edge of town until he was sure Luche and Damien were out of the rain before disappearing into the wilds.

Lugging Luche back into the house was tiring. Damien groaned when he practically dropped him onto the couch. Damien took the mud covered boots off and debated whether or not to slap Luche awake. He chuckled remembering the last time he did and ended up with such an angry ball of fluff that he almost died laughing. Instead, Damien shook Luche hoping to get the man to awake normally. Groaning, Luche’s blue eyes opened slowly.

“Hey, Lu. You want to help me with getting yourself dried up?” Damien said softly with a gently on Luche’s thigh, “I don’t want you catching a cold.” Luche nodded absently as Damien stood up to go get some towels.

Luche stared down at his shivering hands. The palms of his hands were purple and he could see the different veins so clearly that it look liked an intricate map of life. Damien came out with a quiet sigh and a bunch of towels. He dropped most of them on the table and handed Luche one.

“Get dried, Lu. I’ll get you something to drink,” Damien ordered watching for a brief moment as Luche started to dry off. Satisfied, Damien walked back into the small kitchen and started the water kettle before grabbing the alcohol and two glass cups. He knelt down next to Luche as he poured two glasses and once he was sure Luche was dried to a good degree, handed him the glass. Luche took it and stared at the golden liquid before laughing weakly.

“Interesting choice in drinks, Damien,” Luche whispered quietly that Damien had to strain his ears to hear it properly.

“Hey, it warms you up quick while the tea gets heated,” Damien replied as he sat down on the ground next to Luche’s legs, “after you drink the tea, you’re getting sleep on a bed. No arguments, understood?”

“Yeah…, I got it,” Luche answered softly before he knocked back the drink, “fuck that was the strongest shit you got!”

“Yup, I need to make sure you got my message, Luche,” Damien replied glancing up at him with a sad and tired smile, “you need to talk about it because it’s tearing you up inside,” Luche was about to retort but Damien raised a hand to stop him, “you can talk about it when you feel that you can. Preferably tomorrow not right now. It’s too fresh and I can see your heart bleeding. Please, Lu. Take care of yourself better than you’ve been,” Luche gulped nervously and nodded slowly, “good. Now I’m going to make you a cup of tea. You’re going to drink it and go to bed. We’ll talk more then.” Damien got up and headed to the kitchen to stop the water kettle’s whistle.

“Damien…?” Luche whispered quietly staring at his hands like it wasn’t his. Damien turned his attention to him attentively, “I don’t deserve a friend like you.”

“It’s not about deserving, Luche. I’m friends with you because I believe in you for everything that you are,” Damien stated softly before disappearing into the small kitchen, leaving Luche to his thoughts.


End file.
